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Pill bug Gallery

Pill bugs are common land-dwelling crustaceans. They take shelter in dark, moist areas such as rocks in order to conserve water. Pill bugs appear in all games in the Animal Crossing series. This bug, like the centipede, is more common in the winter and spring months. The player can obtain a pill bug by hitting rocks with a shovel until they find one, similar to the strategy used when the player is looking for the bell rock. It has the appearance of a small black dot when it spawns out of the rock.

Capture quotes[]

"I caught a pill bug! I bet that's a bitter pill for it to swallow. (That was really awful.)" —Animal Crossing
"I caught a pill bug! Roll up if you want...you're MINE!" —Wild World
"I caught a pill bug! Why don't you chill, bug?" —City Folk
"I caught a pill bug! I don't know... it seems nice to me!" —New Leaf
"I caught a pill bug! That's a tough act to swallow!" —New Horizons
Japanese Quotes

「だんごむしを つかまえた! たべてはいけない!」 —Animal Forest

"I caught a pill bug! Don't eat it!" (translation)

Donation to the museum[]

As with all bugs in the Animal Crossing series, the pill bug can be donated to the Museum by talking to Blathers, who will give a small speech about it.

In Animal Crossing[]

"Tell me, <player>, have you ever turned a pill bug over and examined its repellant underside? The legs...so many of them...jerking...wiggling...writhing...Blech! Abhorrent! Wretched little monsters!"

In Wild World[]

"I'm sure you've had this happen: your pill bug won't roll up for some reason...and it's only later you discover it's a wood louse!...No? Never happen to you? Very well, I'm mad."

In City Folk[]

"Indeed, when they're all rolled up in a ball, pill bugs seem harmless enough... But flip them over and... OH, THOSE LEGS! Absolutely repugnant. Thinking about how they wriggle and squirm has my feathers crawling! Foulness! Hold a moment. I do rather poorly with shiny, wriggly, wretched creatures like this one."

In New Leaf[]

An information board in the bug exhibit will give information on this bug.

"Pill bugs live in moist places, which is why you will commonly find them under rocks and in stumps. When they're touched, they roll into a ball. Oddly enough, they're part of the crustacean family. As such, and since they don't like dry places, they can travel for a short time underwater if need be."

In New Horizons[]

When either donating to the museum or selecting "Tell me more about this!", Blathers the curator will say (with abhorrence):

"Blech, the pill bug! Children delight at the way these beasts roll into balls when poked... But the appeal is utterly lost on me. One look at their leggy undersides... Hoo! Ewww! How they wriggle! Young pill bugs shed their exoskeletons as they grow, and in doing so, sprout another pair of legs. As if 12 appendages weren't alarming enough! Yuck, I say. Yuck!"

Encyclopedia information[]

Wild World[]

Bug
Encyclopedia Information
Pill bug (Wild World) "Pill bugs are crustaceans, like shrimp or crabs. They breathe with gills, so they can survive under water."
Size 10 mm
Time All day
Season All year
Icon Pill bug (Wild World icon)


City Folk[]

Bug
Encyclopedia Information
Pill Bug (City Folk)
"Classified as crustaceans, these can survive in water by using gills."
Size About 10 mm
Time All day
Season All year


New Leaf[]

Bug
Encyclopedia Information
Pill bug encyclopedia (New Leaf)
"I caught a pill bug! I don't know... it seems nice to me!"
Size 14 mm
Time All day
Season All year


New Horizons[]

Bug
Encyclopedia Information
NH-encyclopedia-Pill bug
"I caught a pill bug! That's a tough act to swallow!"
Current Active Hours 11pm - 4pm
Months active (north) September to June
Months active (south) March to December

Further information[]

Real Pill Bug

A pill bug.

Main article: Armadillidium vulgare on Wikipedia

Pill bugs, Armadillidium vulgare, are from a group of crustaceans that have been known to exist for at least 300 million years. Many members of their family exist as marine crustaceans (Sea Slaters), but some have developed to live on the land while retaining their water-dependent lifestyle. Pill bugs can lay several hundred eggs at one time. Their characteristic defense mechanism, which involves rolling into a protective ball, is copied in-game. The pill bug rolls into a ball when a player approaches it, making it much easier to catch than other ground-dwelling bugs. Their close cousins, woodlice, are frequently mistaken for this bug and vice versa but are easily separated by their shape, color, and lack of ability to roll up.

In other languages[]

Pill bug
Language Name Translation
Japan Japanese ダンゴムシ Dangomushi -
France French Cloporte -
Spain Spanish Cochinilla -
Germany German Kugelassel -
Italy Italian Porcellino di terra -
The Netherlands Dutch Rolpissebed -
Russia Russian Мокрица Mokritsa -
China Chinese 鼠妇/鼠婦 Shǔfù -
South Korea Korean 공벌레 Gongbeolle -



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